New Delhi, Feb. 8: Back from another peacemaking mission to Bangkok, Mizoram chief minister Zoramthanga said leaders of as many as three militant groups of the Northeast were expected to visit New Delhi within a month to begin negotiations with the Centre.
The militant leader-turned-politician met leaders of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) and a couple of other groups during his visit to the Thailand capital. He undertook the mission at the behest of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Zoramthanga said he held ?extensive? discussions with the NSCN (I-M) leadership on their demands. ?I tried to convince them that there is no issue that cannot be resolved through negotiations. They (the militant leaders) are willing to set foot in India if a mutually acceptable formula is worked out. I feel many thorny issues will disappear once the talks are upgraded to the political level.?
The Mizoram chief minister said he had conveyed the ?feelings? of the NSCN (I-M) leadership to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his deputy L.K. Advani. ?My suggestion to appoint a political emissary has been well accepted and fast movement in that direction is expected soon after the Lok Sabha poll.? NSCN (I-M) chairman Isak Chisi Swu and general secretary Th. Muivah were supposed to visit New Delhi and Nagaland this month.
Zoramthanga said both expressed dissatisfaction over the pace of the dialogue with the Centre and said the Naga community?s demand for a single administrative mechanism was a legitimate one.
On the possibility of talks with other militant groups, the Mizo leader said: ?The process of initiating talks with some outfits seems to be proceeding in the right direction. As many as three outfits are likely to arrive in Delhi for the beginning of talks with the Centre within a month. The schedule will be worked out shortly.?
He said the militant groups he had negotiated with were active in Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur, but stopped short of naming them. ?My role will come to an end with the delegates arriving in Delhi. The rest is upto to them (the outfits and the Centre). For me, the desire shown by both sides to sit down and settle the issues is heartening.?
The Achik National Volunteers Council (ANVC), which is active in the Garo hills of Meghalaya, and the National Liberation Front of Tripura are two of the groups Zoramthanga is believed to be negotiating with. An official source said formal talks with these groups might not begin immediately even if their leaders came to Delhi. ?A ceasefire for a considerable length of time is necessary for negotiations on the militants? demands to begin.?
Delhi has yet to begin a dialogue with the Dima Halam Daoga (DHD).